David Coulthard says F1 rule change enabled Max Verstappen overtake on Lewis Hamilton

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Max Verstappen’s pass on Lewis Hamilton at the Austrian Grand Prix shows how Formula 1 has changed, David Coulthard says.

Verstappen and Hamilton’s two duels were arguably the highlights of the race at the Red Bull Ring. The Briton prevailed in the first stint, successfully seeing off an attack.

But when Verstappen, who was on the right side of a tyre offset after pitting later, reeled Hamilton back in on lap 21, he made the move successfully. He would later rue the time he lost against his old rival after missing out on the victory by 1.6 seconds.

David Coulthard says Max Verstappen overtake on Lewis Hamilton shows F1 has changed in 2026

The second time around, Verstappen dived down the inside of turn three before Hamilton regained the place on the run to turn four.

Verstappen earlier felt Hamilton deserved a penalty for running him wide on the outside of turn six, but this time he committed to the inside and aggressively claimed the corner.

Coulthard and F1TV colleague Jolyon Palmer agreed that it was an unorthodox place to overtake, but one that had been made possible by the 2026 engine rule changes. Drivers have around three times as much electrical power at their disposal, which they can access through boost and overtake mode.

“What we’re seeing this year, with the opportunity to deploy in different areas, is much more strategic racing,” said Coulthard. “That’s not normally a place you would expect to see an overtake.”

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Palmer said: “It’s brilliant racing from him. I love the aggression that he’s throwing, inside or outside. He knows that he needs to clear this Ferrari.

“Hamilton, as he did earlier on, using a little more energy deployment down to four, but Max just catching him unawares. It’s not an easy place to throw a lunge, late on the brakes at six.

• READ MORE: Winners and losers from the 2026 Austrian Grand Prix including Max Verstappen and Ferrari

“But he sent it in, ran off line. That doesn’t matter, the move was done on the entry. It was a great pass.”

Critics of the rules, Verstappen chief among them, have argued that the batteries are too powerful, generating ‘yo-yo’ racing. At times, a driver has been helpless to defend his position after an overtake because he has spent all his energy.

But tweaks to the formula in the early months appear to have improved the product, with the debate about the regulations receding into the background, even if it’s far from over.